Plate 9 from "La Tauromaquia": A Spanish knight kills the bull after having lost his horse

About this artwork

This Etching, burnished aquatint, burin by Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) from 1816 exemplifies historical artistic production through its materials, techniques, and aesthetic approach. Created within specific cultural and historical contexts, works like this reflect both individual artistic vision and broader patterns of workshop practice, patron expectations, and prevailing aesthetic theories. The medium of Etching, burnished aquatint, burin required specialized knowledge developed throu...

Art Historical Context

Goya's "Plate9 from La Tauromaquia" presents a tense confrontation between a Spanish knight and bull, moments after the rider has lost mount. Created in 181 as part of a series 33 prints, the work explores the history and drama of bullfighting, a longstanding spectacle in Spanish culture. Francisco de Goya y Lucientes uses the scene to highlight both courage and peril, showing the knight standing his ground with sword raised. The print was made through etching, burnished aquatint, and burin, techniques that allowed Goya to build rich shadows and sharp lines. These methods give the figures a s...

About the Artist

Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) · 1746–1828

Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (1746-1828) was a Spanish painter and printmaker considered the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Rising from modest provincial origins to become First Court Painter to Charles IV, Goya's career spanned the Enlightenment's optimism and the brutal Napoleonic invasion that shattered it. A mysterious illness in 1793 left him permanently deaf and ...